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Few moviegoers would have guessed from his laconic and occasionally blissed-out performances in films like "River's Edge" (1986) and "Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure" (1989) that in less than a decade, Keanu Reeves would be one of Hollywood's most popular and bankable leading men. He had to first endure a long, awkward period, during which he struggled to find his footing in big-budget features like "Bram Stoker's Dracula" (1992) and independent fare like "Little Buddha" (1993); in the eyes of most critics and pundits, he was ill-equipped for both. But his turn as a determined and resourceful police officer in 1994's "Speed" proved him to be a capable action hero, which he underscored by playing Neo, the reluctant Messiah figure in the science fiction blockbuster "The Matrix" (1999) and its two sequels, as well as "Constantine" (2003). Perhaps sensing that his acting abilities remained in the crosshairs of many pundits, he strove to maintain a presence in quieter dramas and the occasional comedy, which received mixed results.Born Keanu Charles Reeves in Beirut, Lebanon on Sept. 2, 1964, his early life was marked by turmoil and change. His parents, costume designer Patricia Taylor, and Samuel Nowlin Reeves - whose Hawaiian-Chinese-European heritage contributed to his son's exotic looks and unusual first name, which translated as "cool breeze over the mountains" in Hawaiian - divorced two years after he was born. In fact, Reeves would not enjoy a close relationship with his father, as the elder Reeves worked as an unskilled laborer and earned his GED while imprisoned in Hawaii for selling cocaine at the Hilo airport. Reeves' mother relocated her son and daughter Kim several times over the next few years; first to Australia and later to New York City and Toronto. She also married and divorced several times, which brought Reeves a half-sister from her mother's marriage to rock promoter Robert Miller in 1976.Reeves struggled with academics due to dyslexia, which contributed to a rambunctious attitude that frequently earned him expulsion from various schools. Ice hockey captured his attention during his school years, and for a time, he considered making it his profession. But his interest soon wandered towards acting, and by his mid-teens, he was appearing in local stage productions. By 17, he had dropped out of school for the last time, and made his television debut as a regular at a youth center in the teen-oriented sitcom "Hangin' In" (CBC, 1981-87). Reeves bounced between odd jobs, television commercials and theater gigs - including Brad Fraser's "Wolfboy," a gay-themed drama with werewolf overtones - before finding regular work on Canadian TV and in features during the late 1980s. He covered all the angles of teen roles during this period, from youth in trouble in "One Step Away" (1985) to nice-guy boyfriends in "Dream to Believe" (1986). That same year, he had a small role as a hockey goalie opposite Rob Lowe and Patrick Swayze in the sodden sports drama "Youngblood" (1986). The experience persuaded Reeves to pack up and move to Hollywood, which he did with just $3,000 in his pocket.Once in Los Angeles, Reeves contacted his former stepfather, director Paul Aaron, who introduced him to agent Erwin Stoff. The latter took Reeves under his wing and helped to guide and mold his subsequent career, as well as co-produce many of his feature films. Stoff also persuaded Reeves to consider a professional name change, fearing that "Keanu" would read as too exotic to casting directors. For the TV-movie fantasy "Young Again" (1986), in which Reeves plays Robert Urich as a 17-year-old, he was billed as K.C. Reeves. The new moniker would disappear shortly thereafter.Reeves' first positive notices in Hollywood came with the grim crime drama "River's Edge" (1986), in which he played the conflicted best friend of a young man (Daniel Roebuck) who has casually and brutally murdered his girlfriend. Though he was outshined by the film's showier p